PGA Championship
PGA Championship preview: Morikawa will Wanamaker fast start to reclaim title
It may feel as though the Masters has not long finished but the second Major of the year is already upon us as the players make their way to Louisville, Kentucky for the PGA Championship.
Valhalla Golf Club will host this year’s tournament, with three previous editions having been played there in 1996, 2000 and 2014.
This time around, the course will play a whopping 7,609 yards and distance will certainly be at the forefront of most good performances this week. Accuracy is not of paramount importance, whilst taking long approaches and a strong putting game will definitely come in handy.
Ignoring Scottie Scheffler at any price proved the wrong decision at the Masters but we’re willing to take him on once again at 4/1, with four players whom we think can provide good value for their odds.
Find our picks for the 2024 PGA Championship below.
Collin Morikawa 28/1
One man who knows how to get the job done at the PGA Championship is 2020’s winner Collin Morikawa. Although the venue of the tournament is ever-changing, there is no substitute for Major winning experience and the change of course is unlikely to faze the two-time champion.
Despite being just 27 years old, Morikawa has an impressive six wins under his belt on the PGA Tour and, although he hasn’t landed a title yet this season, his form is certainly going in the right direction. Having struggled for consistency early on, the Masters brought about a change in Morikawa with a T3 finish and since then he has recorded three successive T23 or better finishes.
Although he is not the longest hitter on the Tour, his general play off the tee is right up there and he ranks 29th for strokes gained in that respect. His long irons have come on after reuniting with swing coach Rick Sessinghaus and the American now ranks 10th on the Tour for approaches from 175-200 yards, a frequent distance at the long Valhalla course.
At 28/1 Morikawa sits ninth in the market but only has two previous winners ahead of him in Rory McIlroy and Brooks Koepka. He will have his sights firmly set on the upper echelons of the leaderboard, not least the 8 places on offer at William Hill, whilst his winning experience may be enough to get him over the line ahead of some of the game’s best.
Wyndham Clark 35/1
Wyndham Clark is another of those in this year’s field with a Major win under his belt, with his sole triumph coming at last year’s US Open. His PGA Championship form doesn’t offer much as his best finish was last year’s T75 effort, but his form over the past couple of years has seen significant improvement and he now must be seriously considered.
The Wells Fargo Championship is one event which correlates with the form at Valhalla and Wyndham Clark’s win there in 2023 certainly bodes well around this long Jack Nicklaus designed course. At 35/1 he will fancy his chances of making good on that crossover and becoming yet another player to land their first Major win at the PGA Championship.
With a win on the PGA Tour, two runner-up finishes and one T3, Clark has been in and around the top of the leaderboard more than most this season and could have a great chance of finishing in the 8 places on offer at William Hill once again.
Shane Lowry 90/1
The first of our bigger-priced selections is Shane Lowry, recent winner of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and former Open champion.
The Irishman is another who has put in good showings at some correlating courses, most notably his third-place finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Bay Hill is another track that brings with it a host of 200+ yards approach shots, with the difficulty of its greens also comparable with those at Major championships.
Lowry’s distance off the tee is not the greatest but he certainly doesn’t lag behind, whilst his accuracy is quite literally second to none as he ranks number one on the Tour for accuracy with the driver. Ending up in the rough would still be no problem for Lowry, especially on those longer holes, as he ranks second on the Tour for approach shots out of the rough from 225-250 yards.
The 8 places on offer at William Hill have been achieved by Lowry on three separate occasions in 2024, whilst previous winning form has been a good indicator of success here, so at 90/1 he could provide great value to build on his Zurich Classic triumph.
Erik van Rooyen 250/1
The outsider of our four selections is South African star Erik van Rooyen who, aside from having an excellent moustache, has also played some equally eye-catching golf so far in 2024.
Van Rooyen has performed in patches so far this season, starting pretty solidly before missing the cut at the Phoenix Open. Following that he put together an impressive three-tournament run of T8, T2 and T25 before missing the cut once again at The Players and the Texas Open.
Since then his form has begun trending the right way with T55, T33 and T4 finishes in his last three outings, and should he continue trending upwards then his price of 250/1 could provide unbelievable value and would return nicely if he were to finish in the 8 places on offer at William Hill.
There is no doubt that he hits a long enough ball to be competitive here, averaging over 300 yards with the driver. His long iron play is also not to be sniffed at, with his favourite area being from 175-200 yards where he ranks third on the Tour. He is also on an impressive run of 149 holes without a 3-Putt which would be a handy one to keep going if he is challenge this week.
